Bahá'u'lláh stressed
the importance of:Unity.Honesty.Chastity.Generosity.Trustworthiness.Purity
of motive.Service
to others.Deeds
over words.Work as a form ofworship.

"So powerful is
the light of unity that it can illuminate the whole earth." --Bahá'u'lláh

Two
Wings of a Bird

A Statement by the
National Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of the United States

The emancipation of women, the
achievement of full equality between the sexes is essential to human progress and the
transformation of society. Inequality retards not only the advancement of women but the
progress of civilization itself. The persistent denial of equality to one-half of the
world's population is an affront to human dignity. It promotes destructive attitudes and
habits in men and women that pass from the family to the work place, to political life,
and ultimately to international relations. On no grounds, moral, biological, or
traditional can inequality be justified. The moral and psychological climate necessary to
enable our nation to establish social justice and to contribute to global peace will be
created only when women attain full partnership with men in all fields of endeavor.

The systematic oppression of women is a
conspicuous and tragic fact of history. Restricted to narrow spheres of activity in the
life of society, denied educational opportunities and basic human rights, subjected to
violence, and frequently treated as less than human, women have been prevented from
realizing their true potential. Age-old patterns of subordination, reflected in popular
culture, literature and art, law, and even religious scriptures, continue to pervade every
aspect of life. Despite the advancement of political and civil rights for women in America
and the widespread acceptance of equality in principle, full equality has not been
achieved.

The damaging effects of gender prejudice are
a fault line beneath the foundation of our national life. The gains for women rest
uneasily on unchanged, often unexamined, inherited assumptions. Much remains to be done.
The achievement of full equality requires a new understanding of who we are, what is our
purpose in life, and how we relate to one another an understanding that will compel us to
reshape our lives and thereby our society.

At no time since the founding of the women's
rights movement in America has the need to focus on this issue been greater. We stand at
the threshold of a new century and a new millennium. Their challenges are already upon us,
influencing our families, our lifestyles, our nation, our world. In the process of human
evolution, the ages of infancy and childhood are past. The turbulence of adolescence is
slowly and painfully preparing us for the age of maturity, when prejudice and exploitation
will be abolished and unity established. The elements necessary to unify peoples and
nations are precisely those needed to bring about equality of the sexes and to improve the
relationships between women and men. The effort to overcome the history of inequality
requires the full participation of every man, woman, youth, and child.

Over a century ago, for the first time in
religious history, Bahá'u'lláh, the Founder of the Bahá'í Faith, in announcing God's purpose for the age,
proclaimed the principle of the equality of women and men, saying: "Women and men
have been and will always be equal in the sight of God."1 The establishment of equal rights and privileges for women and
men, Bahá'u'lláh says, is a precondition for the attainment of a wider unity that will
ensure the well-being and security of all peoples. The Bahá'í Writings state
emphatically that "When all mankind shall receive the same opportunity of education
and the equality of men and women be realized, the foundations of war will be utterly
destroyed."2

Thus the Bahá'í vision of equality between
the sexes rests on the central spiritual principle of the oneness of humankind. The
principle of oneness requires that we "regard humanity as a single individual, and
one's own self as a member of that corporeal form,"3 and that we foster an unshakable consciousness that "if pain
or injury afflicts any member of that body, it must inevitably result in suffering for all
the rest."4

Bahá'u'lláh teaches that the divine purpose of creation is the
achievement of unity among all peoples:

Know ye not why We created you all from the
same dust? That no one should exalt himself over the other. Ponder at all times in your
hearts how ye were created. Since We have created you all from one same substance it is
incumbent on you to be even as one soul, to walk with the same feet, eat with the same
mouth and dwell in the same land, that from your inmost being, by your deeds and actions,
the signs of oneness and the essence of detachment may be made manifest.5

The full and equal participation of women in
all spheres of life is essential to social and economic development, the abolition of war,
and the ultimate establishment of a united world. In the Bahá'í Scriptures the equality
of the sexes is a cornerstone of God's plan for human development and prosperity:

The world of humanity is possessed of two
wings: the male and the female. So long as these two wings are not equivalent in strength,
the bird will not fly. Until womankind reaches the same degree as man, until she enjoys
the same arena of activity, extraordinary attainment for humanity will not be realized;
humanity cannot wing its way to heights of real attainment. When the two wings . . .
become equivalent in strength, enjoying the same prerogatives, the flight of man will be
exceedingly lofty and extraordinary.6

The Bahá'í Writings state that to proclaim
equality is not to deny that differences in function between women and men exist but
rather to affirm the complementary roles men and women fulfill in the home and society at
large. Stating that the acquisition of knowledge serves as "a ladder for [human]
ascent,"7Bahá'u'lláh prescribes identical education for women and men
but stipulates that when resources are limited first priority should be given to the
education of women and girls. The education of girls is particularly important because,
although both parents have responsibilities for the rearing of children, it is through
educated mothers that the benefits of knowledge can be most effectively diffused
throughout society.

Reverence for, and protection of, motherhood
have often been used as justification for keeping women socially and economically
disadvantaged. It is this discriminatory and injurious result that must change. Great
honor and nobility are rightly conferred on the station of motherhood and the importance
of training children. Addressing the high station of motherhood, the Bahá'í Writings
state, "O ye loving mothers, know ye that in God's sight, the best of all ways to
worship Him is to educate the children and train them in all the perfections of
humankind...."8 The great challenge facing society is to make social
and economic provisions for the full and equal participation of women in all aspects of
life while simultaneously reinforcing the critical functions of motherhood.

Asserting that women and men share similar
"station and rank" and "are equally the recipients of powers and endowments
from God,"9 the Bahá'í teachings offer a model of equality
based on the concept of partnership. Only when women become full participants in all
domains of life and enter the important arenas of decision-making will humanity be
prepared to embark on the next stage of its collective development.

Bahá'í Scripture emphatically states that
women will be the greatest factor in establishing universal peace and international
arbitration. "So it will come to pass that when women participate fully and equally
in the affairs of the world, when they enter confidently and capably the great arena of
laws and politics, war will cease; for woman will be the obstacle and hindrance to
it."10

The elimination of discrimination against
women is a spiritual and moral imperative that must ultimately reshape existing legal,
economic, and social arrangements. Promoting the entry of greater numbers of women into
positions of prominence and authority is a necessary but not sufficient step in creating a
just social order. Without fundamental changes in the attitudes and values of individuals
and in the underlying ethos of social institutions, full equality between women and men
cannot be achieved. A community based on partnership, a community in which aggression and
the use of force are supplanted by cooperation and consultation, requires the
transformation of the human heart.

The world in the past has been ruled by
force, and man has dominated over woman by reason of his more forceful and aggressive
qualities both of body and mind. But the balance is already shifting; force is losing its
dominance, and mental alertness, intuition, and the spiritual qualities of love and
service, in which woman is strong, are gaining ascendancy. Hence the new age will be an
age less masculine and more permeated with the feminine ideals...an age in which the
masculine and feminine elements of civilization will be more evenly balanced.11

Men have an inescapable duty to promote the
equality of women. The presumption of superiority by men thwarts the ambition of women and
inhibits the creation of an environment in which equality may reign. The destructive
effects of inequality prevent men from maturing and developing the qualities necessary to
meet the challenges of the new millennium. "As long as women are prevented from
attaining their highest possibilities," the Bahá'í Writings state, "so long
will men be unable to achieve the greatness which might be theirs."12 It is essential that men engage in a careful,
deliberate examination of attitudes, feelings, and behavior deeply rooted in cultural
habit, that block the equal participation of women and stifle the growth of men. The
willingness of men to take responsibility for equality will create an optimum environment
for progress: "When men own the equality of women there will be no need for them to
struggle for their rights!"13

The long-standing and deeply rooted condition
of inequality must be eliminated. To overcome such a condition requires the exercise of
nothing short of "genuine love, extreme patience, true humility, consummate tact,
sound initiative, mature wisdom, and deliberate, persistent, and prayerful effort."14Ultimately,
Bahá'u'lláh promises, a day will come when men will welcome
women in all aspects of life. Now is the time to move decisively toward that promised
future.

Notes

1. Bahá'u'lláh, from a Tablet translated
from the Persian and Arabic, quoted in Women: Extracts from the Writings of
Bahá'u'lláh, 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Shoghi Effendi and the Universal House of Justice, comp.
Research Department of the Universal House of Justice (Thornhill, Ontario: National
Spiritual Assembly of the Bahá'ís of Canada, 1986), no. 54.

2. 'Abdu'l-Bahá, The Promulgation of
Universal Peace: Talks delivered by 'Abdu'l-Bahá during His Visit to the United States
and Canada in 1912, comp. Howard MacNutt, 2d ed. (Wilmette, Ill.: Bahá'í Publishing
Trust, 1982), p. 175.

8. 'Abdu'l-Bahá, Selections from the
Writings of 'Abdu'l-Bahá, comp. Research Department of the Universal House of
Justice, trans. Committee at the Bahá'í World Centre and Marzieh Gail (Wilmette, Ill.:
Bahá'í Publishing Trust, 1997), 114.1.